Rufus Restoration Planting Completed

Rufus is an island site located 25 miles east of The Dalles Oregon in the Columbia Gorge. This site is one of two mitigation sites at which habitat restoration is being done as part of the Wyeth Columbia River Treaty Fishing Access Site project that we are working on with Advanced American Construction, Inc., the general contractor for this project. This U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project will provide Native American tribes with fishing access to the Columbia River and is one of 31 total similar sites that will eventually fulfill treaty agreements that the U.S. government made with Native American tribes that preserve fishing access for these groups.  The restoration mitigation work is being done to compensate for disturbance to fish habitat as a result of the construction of a boat dock and break waters.

The Rufus site, approximately 10 acres in size, is a remnant of excavation work resulting from construction of the John Day Dam. Our early investigation of the site revealed that a willow like plant found extensively along the shoreline of the island is in fact an invasive species called False Indigo (Amorpha fruticosa). This plant species as it turns out has become a heavily predominant shoreline plant in many areas of the Columbia Gorge.

Cedar Landscape, the landscape contractor for the project, planted approximately 1,500 Willow, Cottonwood and Dogwood live stake plantings over approximately 1.4 acres of shoreline in order to reestablish native habitat vegetation. Information learned from the success of this project will be instrumental for future habitat restoration endeavors. Other restoration work on the site included installation of large woody debris along the shoreline, the re-grading of shoreline slopes and the excavation of part of the island to a submerged condition. The goal of this work is to enhance shoreline for fish habitat.

Native Planting Restoration Begins at the Wyeth Columbia River Treaty Fishing Access Site

 

GreenWorks is working with Advanced American Construction, Inc., the contractor for this U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project, to design and build a fishing access site on the Columbia River for Native American Tribes.  This In-Lieu site is one of a total of 31 sites totaling 400 acres, that will fulfill treaty agreements that the U.S. government made with Native American Tribes that guarantee access to Columbia River fishing grounds that were lost as a result of the construction of the Bonneville, Dalles and John Day Dams. 

The Wyeth site is located approximately 10 miles to the west of Hood River, and entails the construction of a new bridge for access over the railroad line, dock, boatramp, breakwaters and campground facility. Restoration using native plant species has recently been completed on the bridge abutment slopes. In addition to the container plantings, the slopes have been seeded for erosion control along with a biotic soil amendment called PermMatrix, a new product by Sunmark Seeds, which brings together many of the soil like components that are needed for plant growth. This product is an excellent alternative to importing top soil. Planting installation on the project is by Cedar Landscape, Inc. of Hillsboro, Oregon. Engineering on the project was provided by PND Engineers, Inc. out of Seattle, Washington.

2011 Engineering Excellence Awards

Last week, the American Council of Engineering Companies of Oregon (ACEC) announced the 2011 Engineering Excellence Awards.  33 projects were recognized as being outstanding examples in their category during the event.  The awards were broken down into 10 separate categories:

1. Building Technology Systems
2. Energy
3. Small Projects
4. Special Projects
5. Structural Systems
6. Studies, Research, and Consulting
7. Surveying and Mapping
8. Transportation
9. Water Resources
10. Water and Storm Water

We wanted to pass along our congratulations to all the award winners.  GreenWorks was lucky enough to be on three project teams that won awards that evening.  The Anderson Road Green Street Project , LaCenter Wastewater Treatment Plant Expansion, and the Encore Building brought home awards that evening.  The full DJC article can be found here.

Green Infrastructure Webinar

On February 23rd, the Watershed Management Group (out of Tuscon, AZ) is hosting the first webinar titled Green Infrastructure Case Studies. It is the first in a three part series discussing the importance of Green Infrastructure in our neighborhoods and cities. Three cities will be represented: Tucson, Austin, and Portland. GreenWorks will be representing the Portland viewpoint and presenting projects from around the Metro region. The webinar is free, so please sign up and enjoy the conversation about green infrastructure. To register for the webinar click here.

Bond Measure Dollars at Work!

The Project Pioneer Park, located in the Tualatin Hills and Recreation District, embodies some unique natural features including approximately 7.5 acres of wetlands, stream corridors, and upland forest. This park is an amenity for the surrounding neighborhood and we are excited about the opportunity to provide general park upgrades, increase habitat value, and provide an attentive approach to stewardship while creating a memorable and enjoyable recreation space.

GreenWorks Approach

The design challenge at Pioneer Park is how to balance ecological preservation and restoration with recreational uses. The park improvements should respect the natural amenities on site including hundreds of mature native trees and a seasonally wet field. We hope to offer features that keep park users’ feet a little drier and less muddy as they walk through the park. Upgraded play opportunities and ball courts will also be a priority. Our design team will be following the City of Beaverton, Clean Water Services, Division of State Lands and Army Corps of Engineers guidelines for development in sensitive ecosystems.

How You Can Get Involved?

What type of site features would you like to see in this park? How can Pioneer Neighborhood Park be improved? Come share your thoughts and ideas with us at the first community involvement workshop on March 17^th. For specific project updates, public meeting details, and general bond information please click on the link to THPRD’s website. From there, you will be able to view Pioneer Park project updates for both the park renovation and the natural area preservation.

http://www.thprd.org/bondprojects/schedule.cfm

We look forward to working with THPRD and the community to make this great park even better!

Stormwater Features Completed at Beverly Cleary School

As a Landscape Architect at GreenWorks, I get the chance to work on projects for many local public schools. I am often amazed at how much Portland area students know about rainwater. To some of them the terms rain garden, infiltration, and combined sewer are household words. A few years ago, in a 5^th grade class, I lead a discussion on the effects of urban development on stormwater and how increased impervious surfaces speed up and pollute our water . I was barraged with questions about why we continue to let this happen and why someone is not doing more about it. It seems the work of local designers, environmentalists and agencies was not enough for them. It’s refreshing to see this type of concern and curiosity in young people. It inspires me to continue to work with schools. The school community at Beverly Cleary School in NE Portland was inspired to develop a project that improved their schools effects on urban stormwater.  It took some determination.  They built and planted a swale at their school in the spring of 2006, but the downspouts were never disconnected to feed into the swale.

Recently, a dedicated parent with the support of the school community fostered the project through to completion. GreenWorks donated design and consulting services for the swale and most recently for design of the downspout disconnects. In addition to the downspout design, GreenWorks collaborated with students to measure the soil’s infiltration rate, and helped with contractor coordination during construction. The highlight of the project is the pouring downspout bucket. See it in action below. This living science lab is now open for exploration and learning by the school’s students!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj-tXCxpzsE&fs=1&hl=en_US]

Michelle Mathis is a Landscape Architect at GreenWorks with 8 years of experience.  She received a Bachelor of Science degree in Landscape Architecture from Ohio State University Knowlton School of Architecture, and has a Master’s in Education from Portland State University.

Green Streets in Tucson, AZ

The Watershed Management Group (WMG) out of Tucson, AZ has been promoting the installation of green street facilities in the SW region for rainwater harvesting.  In August of 2010, WMG put together a comprehensive document called Green Infrastructure for Southwestern Neighborhoods that describes and illustrates the benefits and installation techniques for green street projects.  Recently they produced a video showing the real world application of their green street designs.  WMG describes the video as...

This short (5 minute) video explains the benefits of using green infrastructure and how WMG advocates and implements these practices through educational workshops.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TyGC6KSi74&feature=playerembedded]

Kudos to WMG for implementing these projects and teaching neighbors about the benefits of green street facilities.